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Opinion Column by Rep. Smith

Published: March 02, 2006
Last Updated: March 02, 2006

America’s Founding Fathers, fleeing an oppressive king, sought to create a democracy that would be responsive to its citizens. They gave citizens of their newly formed United States of America the power to vote their leaders in and out of office.

And it was Thomas Jefferson who understood that the key to a lasting democracy was an informed public. Jefferson once said, "Educate and inform the whole mass of the people.... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty." In other words, when the public has information, they can make informed decisions about who should govern.

Every American citizen should be able to quickly and easily obtain public information from the federal government. This promotes a responsive democracy, but unfortunately it isn’t always so easy.

The process for obtaining government information is overly burdensome and federal agencies have become less and less responsive to requests for information. This deters citizens from seeking information to which they are entitled.

Last December, President Bush signed an executive order aimed at improving federal agencies’ disclosure of requested information. The order promoted agency accountability by requiring that within each agency, an assistant secretary be designated as the chief FOIA officer. They will oversee FOIA implementation within the agency and review the agency’s FOIA process. The plan must be implemented over a two-year time period and must include a process to eliminate the agency’s FOIA request backlog.

The order also requires the establishment of at least one FOIA Request Service Center within each agency. The Service Center will have a service-oriented approach to taking requests. One of its main responsibilities will be to track the status of FOIA requests. A public liaison officer will be appointed within each agency so that the FOIA requestor can talk to that person if they do not get satisfaction from the initial service center call.

The president’s executive order is a good first step, but it falls short of the reforms that are necessary to fix the enormous problems caused by years of neglect of FOIA requests. There is a lot more that we can do to ensure that the public is able to get the information it needs to make informed decisions.

Last year, I introduced the Openness Promotes Effectiveness in our National Government Act of 2005, or OPEN Government Act, in the U.S. House of Representatives. The legislation is designed to give the public more access to information and more insight into the workings of government by strengthening the Freedom of Information Act . Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) is the bill’s sponsor in the Senate.

The OPEN Government Act includes provisions that would create a broader definition of "news media" so that all types of news media, including smaller, non-traditional outlets, can obtain government documents at minimal cost. It would allow more individuals to recover attorneys’ fees when they are on the winning side of litigation to get information from the government, tighten up time limits for government agencies to respond to FOIA requests, and require individual tracking numbers for each FOIA request.

The Freedom of Information Act performs a vital check on the federal branch. It protects our open system of government and ensures that the government responds to the American people.

Taxpayers should have the opportunity to obtain information quickly and easily. The OPEN Government Act will greatly improve the public’s right to know what the government is doing in their name. It should be enacted into law.

As Thomas Jefferson noted, "Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppressions of body and mind will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day." The foundation of a strong democracy is an informed public.

Republican Congressman Smith has represented Texas' 21st district since 1987. In addition to sitting on several House committees, he is chairman of the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property of the House Judiciary Committee.